After assembly, before baking!
I love turkey…….just for Thanksgiving, and just once a year. Most people I know also look forward to turkey sandwiches the next day, but after that, it’s a struggle. It has such a strong smell that it tends to overwhelm by day three. I wanted to make a leftover dish that was flavorful enough to seem like something completely different.
This year it was a Turkey-Sausage Cassoulet. A Cassoulet is a meat and bean dish. It's a traditional peasant dish in France Sort of like the spanish Paella, it can have thousands of variations. I wanted mine to be Gluten Free, healthy, and filled with more than turkey and beans. A few months ago I mentioned that I had purchased a sustainably raised half pig from some friends. The ground sausage is really, really good, and very lean. I thought it might compliment the turkey in a nice way.
The gluten free component arose when our son Andrew walked in the door wednesday evening before Thanksgiving. His trip was unplanned and a complete surprise for us. We love that, and I think he loves doing it! He switched to a gluten free diet a week ago to see if it would take care of a few health problems, and found that he felt better in a few days. I wanted to support that while he was home. Pat and I made a decision to keep it up since Andrew left, so I’ll talk more about it in future posts.
I loved the Cassoulet. It’s rather protein rich, so I served a smaller portion over brown rice with a dinner salad. You could also serve it like a stew with some crusty bread.
Turkey-Sausage Cassoulet
Note: Every Cassoulet recipe seems to be a multiple day process. The prep time on this is about 30 minutes or less (except the beans). The cooking time is more, but you could also do this in a crockpot.
Serves 6-8
A few cups of leftover turkey, cut into chunks
1/2 lb ground sausage, browned and drained
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1/2 lb (or two cans) white beans (I used white cassoulet beans from Rancho Gordo)
3 cloves garlic, chopped or minced
1 can diced tomatoes, blended
2 cups chicken broth
2 T cooking sherry
1 tsp thyme
sea salt and black pepper, to taste
Bouquet Garni
1/2 stalk celery
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1. soak beans overnight. Cook until done. (or use canned beans, drained)
2. Saute onions until soft. Add garlic and carrots and continue cooking for a few minutes
3. Add all the ingredients, except the beans and cook until bubbly.
4. Layer beans in bottom of covered casserole. Cover the beans with the meat and vegetable mixture.
5. Cover and cook at 350 degrees for 2 hours or so. Uncover for another 30-45 minutes until browned.
This year it was a Turkey-Sausage Cassoulet. A Cassoulet is a meat and bean dish. It's a traditional peasant dish in France Sort of like the spanish Paella, it can have thousands of variations. I wanted mine to be Gluten Free, healthy, and filled with more than turkey and beans. A few months ago I mentioned that I had purchased a sustainably raised half pig from some friends. The ground sausage is really, really good, and very lean. I thought it might compliment the turkey in a nice way.
The gluten free component arose when our son Andrew walked in the door wednesday evening before Thanksgiving. His trip was unplanned and a complete surprise for us. We love that, and I think he loves doing it! He switched to a gluten free diet a week ago to see if it would take care of a few health problems, and found that he felt better in a few days. I wanted to support that while he was home. Pat and I made a decision to keep it up since Andrew left, so I’ll talk more about it in future posts.
I loved the Cassoulet. It’s rather protein rich, so I served a smaller portion over brown rice with a dinner salad. You could also serve it like a stew with some crusty bread.
Turkey-Sausage Cassoulet
Note: Every Cassoulet recipe seems to be a multiple day process. The prep time on this is about 30 minutes or less (except the beans). The cooking time is more, but you could also do this in a crockpot.
Serves 6-8
A few cups of leftover turkey, cut into chunks
1/2 lb ground sausage, browned and drained
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1/2 lb (or two cans) white beans (I used white cassoulet beans from Rancho Gordo)
3 cloves garlic, chopped or minced
1 can diced tomatoes, blended
2 cups chicken broth
2 T cooking sherry
1 tsp thyme
sea salt and black pepper, to taste
Bouquet Garni
1/2 stalk celery
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1. soak beans overnight. Cook until done. (or use canned beans, drained)
2. Saute onions until soft. Add garlic and carrots and continue cooking for a few minutes
3. Add all the ingredients, except the beans and cook until bubbly.
4. Layer beans in bottom of covered casserole. Cover the beans with the meat and vegetable mixture.
5. Cover and cook at 350 degrees for 2 hours or so. Uncover for another 30-45 minutes until browned.
RSS Feed
